Ozarks At Large

Arkansas ends its fiscal year with a surplus of several million dollars, but lawmakers have no firm plans yet of how to spend the money. Ongoing highway improvements mean some road closures and delays over the holiday weekend. And, students at UALR react to the interest rate hike that went into effect this week on Stafford student loans for low income students.




The United States Supreme Court decision regarding the Voting Rights Act means changes for Arkansas.
The popular resort town of Eureka Springs is a prime Ozarks vacation spot filled with pretty B&Bs, cottages and cabins for overnight guests. But as Jacqueline Froelich reports, some say a glut of tourist accommodations and vacation rentals are dislocating residents, forcing them to live out of town.
Arkansas home sales are up by 10 percent according to the Arkansas Realtors Association. The half-cent highway sales tax kicks in this month and will continue for the next ten years. The Fort Smith Fire Department honors one of its own who rescued a child from a 30-foot utility shaft. And a familiar term to Fayetteville residents: construction zone.
Latest Edition of Ozarks at Large
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
On this edition of Ozarks, a conversation with photographer and author Tim Ernst. Also, giving the gift of a free family portrait to those in need.
Justin Minkel, a Springdale elementary school teacher and 2007 Arkansas Teacher of the Year, has just written a new book aimed at young readers.
Here are out ten clips relating to Buffalo, New York and the War of 1812.
1) Ten Thousand Maniacs (from the Buffalo area) sing Because the Night,
2) Robert Redford and Wilford Brimley in The Natural (filmed in Buffalo).
3) Bruce Springsteen sings about Buffalo's Erie Canal.
4) A trailer, featuring Marilyn Monroe, for the movie Niagara…set in nearby Niagara Falls.
5) Buffalo native Rick James ponders a Super Freak.
6) A BBC documentary about the assassination of President McKinley. The shooting happened in Buffalo. (as did the subsequent swearing-n ceremony of Theodore Roosevelt).
7) The only electronic song we know of about Buffalo native Grover Cleveland.
8) Judy Garland sings Somewhere Over the Rainbow…written by Buffalo native Harold Arlen.
9) Amanda Blake, another Buffalo native, as Miss Kitty on an early episode of Gunsmoke.
10) Johnny Horton sings The Battle of New Orleans, about the final battle of the War of 1812. Arkansas connection: written by Jimmy Driftwood.
Roby Brock, from our content partner Talk Business Arkansas, offers a preview of the state's politics in the coming year.
"The Boxer" by Editors
Becca Martin Brown from Northwest Arkansas Newspapers suggests 12 things you should do in 2014.
Kevin Kinder and Kyle Kellams compare their lists of favorite music for 2013.